An Unwanted Power
by tstalways101
Summary: Piper must get a handle on her new powers, or Wyatt is sentenced to death. Please Review! (New: Chapter Six is up!)
1. Chapter One

A long brown curl escaped from the clip that secured the rest of  
Piper's massive mane. Her head was bent over a book, her finger's ink  
stained and her purple robe slipping off of one shoulder. The attic  
was quiet, and the thick, ancient book before her was focal point of  
brown eyes, the slowly dripping lids nearly covering them.  
  
"Moooooommy!" The piercing scream jolted Piper back to reality, and  
she gently set the book back on the pedestal before rushing down the  
stairs. "Sweety, I'll be there in a minute!" She called, dodging in  
the room as an energy ball flew towards Wyatt. "Not again," she  
muttered under her breath, freezing both the energy ball and the demon  
before scooping her son from his bed and rushing to the door. "This is  
what you get for picking on babies!" Her fingers splayed in the air,  
and the demon exploding, blood and guts spraying everywhere. "Oh god!"  
She moaned, looking down at her son painted in guts. "I just gave you  
a bath."  
  


* * *

  
An hour later, Piper was glaring at an infuriated Leo. "I- I can not  
believe you let the demon get that close."  
  
"I vanquished his sorry ass as fast as I could! I am so sorry I cannot  
just orb down!" Piper rolled her eyes, lowering her voice to a hiss as  
she caught the sight of her still son in his crib. "I know it was a  
close call... I know." Piper shivered, then moved her head adjacent to  
her shoulders so he couldn't see the pure terror in her eyes. "I do  
not want my son..." Her voice quavered, and suddenly Piper disappeared.  
  
"Piper?" Leo cried out. "Piper!"  
  
"Down here!" She called, her voice muffled. Leo promptly orbed into  
the basement, leaving a lingering blue bubble in his wake.  
  
Leo was in a crumpled heap on the stone floor, her ankle twisted. "L-  
Leo!" Her ankle was nearly shattered, and blood was spilled on the  
floor. He ran to her, laying his hands on her mangled foot and  
watching to bones promptly slide in place. "What happened to me?"  
Tears had cloistered in her eyes, but she swiftly blinked them away. A  
far away cry brought them back to the present situation. "Wyatt!" The  
two orbed up to Wyatt, who's room was in perfect order- only the child  
himself was gone.  
  
"Oh, no!" Leo's face crumbled, and his arm shot out in anger. Wyatt's  
toys fell from the shelf, hitting the ground with a distinct 'thud.'  
  
"Oh, Mom- Prue... help me..." Piper choked out, her body slumping onto the  
blue hued walls. "Prue... I need... you." Then she fainted, dead away. 


	2. Chapter Two

Water sprayed over Piper's body, erasing the marks of blood that she had received earlier, but leaving the looming feeling of dread. Allowing her lashes to flutter closed, she stood silent for a minute, the usually gentle sound of water pounding in her ears as brash as drums. She hurriedly stopped the water and wrapped a lush towel around her body, trying to suppress the tears that threatened to erupt. iI- I must wait until we have Wyatt back to cry. Tears will do me no good now./i Tucking the spare end of the towel in, she made her way to the living room where the remaining Charmed Ones and their whitelighter's had gathered.  
  
Piper couldn't restrain the faint blush that painted her cheeks as Leo  
silently appraised her with his eyes. The towel she had plucked from  
the hook was large and thick, but it ended in her mid thighs. "N-Now  
what?" Her voice quavered, and suddenly she disappeared again, the  
only thing remaining of her was the towel. When a fierce cry was  
heard, Phoebe rushed up the stairs as Paige, Leo and Chris orbed.  
  


* * *

  
A sky-clad Piper was blushing furiously in the Attic as an amused Leo  
turned his back. "I cannot believe that just happened! Give me your  
shirt!" Leo, chuckling, obeyed, and Piper buttoned up the (thankfully)  
lengthy flannel shirt. It covered her, although it was shorter then  
even the towel she had donned earlier. A split second later, Chris and  
Paige appeared, and Phoebe came in through the door, panting. They  
looked at her curiously, and she shrugged in exasperation. "I don't  
know what's happening to me! It happened earlier, too."  
  
A strange expression crossed Leo's face, and he nodded decisively.  
"You just received another power, Piper. I didn't know earlier, but....  
You know can separate your molecules, which makes you invisible. You  
can float with your molecule's separated. This should be helpful in  
finding Wyatt." At his son's name, his face fell, and he bowed his  
head.  
  
"What the hell?" Piper shouted. "Do they love giving me powers when  
the stakes are highest? If- when..." She corrected herself, choking over  
the lump in her voice. "When I find my sun, my molecule's may just  
separate and I will float somewhere else."  
  
Phoebe wrapped her arms around Piper, resting her head on her sister's  
shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll find him. You just need to get a handle  
on your new power."  
  
Chris's jaw was jarred closed, his arms crossed stonily. It was  
obvious Leo and Piper's sisters had told him to keep his mouth shut,  
but he was obviously unsuccessful. "Piper! How could you leave Wyatt  
alone!" He began, his voice a torrent of words rushing together.  
  
"Go." Piper demanded, her voice cool and unruffled, but her face  
slowly crumbling as everyone watched. "Now!" As every one slowly  
descended the stairs, Piper turned to the book and flipped open the  
massive cover. "Mom, Grams- Prue. Don't abandon me now..." 


	3. Chapter Three

A spare patch of attic floor was cleared and surrounded by candles. Piper was crouched by one, lighting the final white coated candle. She could hear a muffled knock on the door, but she dismissed it. "She will help me- she will," Piper muttered, turning to the book on the pedestal, raising her head like an angry lioness. "She will." Clearing her throat, she followed the spell with her index finger, preparing the potion. Finally, with a throw of her head, she began, her voice clear and unwavering.  
  
"Hear these words, hear my cry  
  
Spirit from the other side  
  
Come to me, I summon the  
  
Cross now the great divide"  
  
A flickering image of Prue appeared in the midst of the candles, and  
Piper sniffled. "Prue!" She whispered, her voice hoarse with emotion.  
  
"Piper!" Prue stepped out from the circle of candles and solidified.  
Rushing towards her older sister, she grabbed Prue for all her life,  
and Prue did the same. After a few moments of just holding on, Prue  
held up her head. "Your son, Piper. We always knew you were going to  
have a baby first- even if I am oldest." Prue teased gently.  
  
"He-he's gone. And I need your help. Can you-" Pipers voice broke, and  
she looked up into Prue's tear-stained face. "I missed you so much!  
Why did you leave me?"  
  
The door creaked open to reveal the shocked faces of Phoebe, Paige,  
Leo and Chris. Chris's voice cracked as he muttered, "This did not  
happened. This changes everything." Then his image flashed, and he  
disappeared.  
  


* * *

  
Piper's face was contorted in shock as she saw the void spot where  
Chris had been standing. "Wh-what changes? I want to know what  
changed! Her molecules flickered, and the window erupted in shards of  
glass. Suddenly, her molecule's painfully snapped back together.  
"Ouch! Damnit!" Piper turned, rubbing her eyes. "I- I deleted someone  
fr-from..." Prue strode before Piper, resting her hands on her sister's  
shoulder. "Honey, you didn't do anything. If you accidentally changed  
the future, that's not your fault. You didn't know how it went. Right  
now we have to focus on the present- finding Wyatt." She turned to  
Leo. "Could you go talk to the Elders, and see if they know anything?  
I know your supposed to be one now, but you can't get everything from  
down here." Leo disappeared in a swirl of blue and white tinted  
globes. She then turned to Phoebe. "You get the crystal and the maps-  
we're going to try and scry for Wyatt. Me and Piper will go through  
the book. We're going to look for the demon she blew up before- maybe  
he reformed."  
  
Phoebe nodded, her lips twisting into a slight smile. "Yeah- and it's  
good to have you back, sis." She jogged over and wrapped her arms  
around her big sister before snatching Paige's wrist and dragging her  
down the stairs. No one noticed the forlorn expression on Paige's  
face, nor the peculiar one on Pipers. 


	4. Chapter Four

Piper sat in the middle of her bed, in the midst of crumpled and  
twisted sheets. She had discarded Leo's shirt for a simple cotton t-  
shirt that clung to her torso, and a pair of baggy khaki's. Bags hung  
under her eyes, and her slim, pale hands shook as they clung to each  
other, trying to concentrate. Slowly, her image began to separate and  
she disappeared.  
  
"Piper? We need some help on this potion," Phoebe called into  
the room softly, poking her head through the slightly ajar doorway.  
"Piper?"  
  
Piper came tumbling from the ceiling unto the bed, her limbs  
entangling with the various sheets on the bed. Tossing her head up,  
and with a stricken expression on her face, she looked curiously at  
Phoebe. "Was I sleeping on the ceiling?" Phoebe giggled, and crawled  
onto the bed with Piper, helping her distangle her appendages.  
"Sweetie, what where you doing?"  
  
Sheepishly shrugging, Piper grinned, "Practicing?" Throwing her hands  
around Phoebe, she whispered in her sister's ear. "But you know what?  
After all that bitching I was doing, it's sort of cool." The door  
creaked open, and both of the sisters jumped. Prue sauntered in, a  
smug expression painted across her face. A rather snug pair of low-  
riding jeans hugged her hips, and a low cut black backless shirt  
decorated her torso. Phoebe squealed. "You're wearing your clothes!  
You look lovely." Phoebe bounced as Prue climbed into the bed, laying  
her head on Piper's shoulder, her luxurious black hair pooling around  
her shoulders. "I wuv you two."  
  
"I love you, too, Prue." Piper replied, which caused Phoebe to giggle  
and profess her love for her sisters. They heard a hesitant knock, and  
saw a reluctant Paige and a determined Leo come in. "Are you done  
playing? I was trying to find our son."  
  
Piper clutched at her heart with a look of pure terror, and looked  
away. Prue glared at Leo. "Look Leo, I love you like a brother, but  
you do [b]not[/b] say that to my sister, or I'll have to kick you're a-  
orbs! We are going to find [b]Piper's[/b] son- I mean, after all  
you'll be going soon, and no one's going to be able to see you. I  
think she would be more affected by this."  
  
Leo's face crumbled, and he immediately apologized. "I'm sorry- I'm  
just worried. I can only barely sense him- and, and- well, I'm  
worried. And Piper, honey- I mean... well, I know your worried and you  
need your sisters" at that Paige looked at her hands, stroking her  
fingers over her recently manicured nails "but you need to practice."  
  
"Leo, that's what she was doing. She needs to relax- our emotions  
intertwine with our powers, so we were trying to get her to relax.  
Anyways, me and Piper just got our big sister back- who is totally  
kick ass and will help us."  
  
Piper looked up, her amazingly expressful eyes gleaming with tears.  
"We- I will find my son," sweeping away a lengthy black tendril-  
Prue's hair- from her eyes, she repeated herself. "I need find my son...  
soon." 


	5. Chapter Five

"Prue?" Phoebe shouted as she ran up the stairs, carefully plastering her cleavage to her torso in fear that it would pop out. iI should /b had worn this top today,/i Phoebe thought in disgust. "Prue?" Phoebe's black top was strappy, sassy, and was barely- there. Blowing a tuft of invisible brown hair from her eyes, Phoebe stopped. She never realized how much she had enjoyed her lengthy tresses until she cut them. Tenderly touching her styled 'do, she never saw Prue barging out from the bathroom.  
  
"Ow!" Phoebe squealed, gingerly toughing a manicured finger to the  
bruise. Paige, whom had just begun walking up the stairs and had seen  
the scene, began to ask if she was okay. "Pheebs-" But was promptly  
interrupted.  
  
"Oh, god, Pheebs, I didn't see you there. Um- Paige, right? Could you  
get us some ice?"  
  
"I'd be glad to," hissed Paige bitterly, disappearing into a cluster  
of blue-white orbs. Phoebe, after having thoroughly investigated the  
lump on her head with her hands, looked up at Prue. "Naw, I'm okay.  
But have you seen Piper?"  
  
Prue ruefully shook her head, and then, after having deemed Phoebe  
okay, began to tentatively touch her own face. "Wow, it's so weird to  
feel my flesh again." The two sisters looked at each other and  
collapsed in a heap of girlish giggles.  
  


* * *

  
Piper was dressed for stealth. The black tank-top was skintight and  
although it looked nice on her, that wasn't its primary purpose. Her  
ebony hued pants were cotton and easily maneuverable, and so were the  
black boots she had found in the attic. Her mops of chocolate brown  
hair had been carefully brushed into a ponytail, and black tape had  
been wrapped about the pale, thin knuckles on her hands.  
  
The gloomy cave was apparently inhabited by an unusual demon. A demon  
with only two active powers- the power to reform and the power to  
transmutate babies.  
  
Paige's scrying had been unsuccessful, but Piper's had gone much  
smoother- possibly because she was the most important thing in her  
son's life, at least, so far. Melding her lithe form against the damp,  
mildly slimy wall of the cave, Piper's eyes clamped shut. Slowly, her  
molecules separated, causing a placid breeze to waft through the air.  
As her now divided molecules floated through the air, a stench hit  
Piper. She continued on though, until she saw Wyatt. He had been  
strapped to a board, his chubby little hands and feet scrapped and  
mildly bruised. A bubble was around him, his only defense, but they  
were slowly breaking through it. With a shriek, she fell from the air  
onto the ground, rolled across the musty stone floor (her clothes  
collecting dust and that such rubbish).  
  
"Get the hell away from my son!" 


	6. Chapter Six

Pale fingers curling around the handle, Paige jerked the refrigerator open with such frustration and anger it shook. Bright yellow light sleepily spilled from its hiding place, and Paige blinked rapidly. "Why does Prue make me feel like chopped liver?" She growled, plucking out three cubes of ice from a pile. The blocks were frigid against her soft skin, but she relished the change. She felt hot fury spreading off her face. She needed to cool off.  
  
"/i said she would like me. But instead, she ignores me! And since I was only her replacement, I'm not needed here anymore, I suppose." Tears pooled in her eyes, but Paige refused to allow them to spill into her face. Although she wasn't the beloved Prue, Paige was strong. She refused to let her eldest sisters refusal of acceptance bother her. She was part of this family- an integral part, damnit!- whether she liked it or not. Gingerly wrapping the ice in a cloth, she was about to tread the stairs but stopped herself. "Why should I?" She argued to herself. "Phoebe didn't want my comfort, and Prue can/b order me around like that. I deserve better," She said, squinting her rich brown eyes and working up a righteous swell of indignation.  
  
Her heart paused for a minute. "Piper?" She was in trouble. And Phoebe and Prue didn't seem to want her here- closing her eyes to hide the hurt and pain, she once more dissolved into a cluster of blue and white orbs, floating to a place where she could help her sister and her nephew. iShe hoped./i  
  
***  
  
"Where is that girl? Can't she hurry her orbs up?" Prue mumbled as she and Phoebe were sprawled across Phoebe's bad, Phoebe plaiting Prue's lengthy tresses and enviously wishing her own were the same length.  
  
"Prue, your too hard on her," reprimanded Phoebe gently, knocking her older sister on the skull and letting out a brief giggle. "She is probably talking to Piper- trying to calm her down and focus. Paige is good like that." Prue's eyes flew heavenwards, but she otherwise ignored the comment praising their half-sister. "Whatever," she replied with an air of annoyance. "Hey, do you still have my clothes?" When Phoebe nodded, Prue glanced suspiciously. "Girl, if you stole them, I'm taking them back now, you know."  
  
Phoebe vigorously shook her head, "No way! I earned those fair and square!" Then the realization of what she said hit her, and her face crumpled. "I-I- I didn't m-mean it like t-that," she stuttered, her darkly lashed lids fluttering close to hide the pain her eyes russet depths.  
  
"Sweetie, I know you didn't. Don't worry about it," Prue said gently, turning around and patting Phoebe on the cheek. "I'm here now- don't worry about it. I'll protect you." Phoebe laid her head on her older sister's shoulder, relishing in the protective, comforting presence. 


	7. Interlude

A/N: This is just an interruption from the story to tell everyone who has reviewed it: Thank you so much! I love criticism, advice, and I'll admit that I love the praise ;).  
  
Gryffindor620: Wow, thanks so much for continually reviewing. I am so happy you like my story!  
  
xjelliepotatoex: Thanks ( I didn't know if people would pick up on the Leo- Piper thing because I tried to do it subtly. :-P Thanks for the advice about Paige- again, I was trying subtlety and wondering if people would notice, but Chapter Six should straighten out her feelings. (PS: Yes, I agree- Piper hasn't got a new power in forever. Haha, that was the whole reason for the fanfic, and then the plot came after!)  
  
jZzRgRl13: Since this is my first fanfic I intend to finish, I realize I am going very fast. It's just usually, I never finish them and they dwindle on and on. My next one I will flesh out a bit. I don't understand how its confusing- could you elaborate? But thank you so much for the advice. It's all good. 


End file.
